Thursday, March 12, 2015

'12 Monkeys' Renewed for Second Season by Syfy

Syfy announced today that the widely praised adventure thriller 12 Monkeys has been greenlit for a second season, expected to air in 2016.

With Natalie Chaidez prepping her next Syfy series (UCP and Valhalla Productions' Hunters), Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett (Nikita), co-executive producers and writers of the pilot, will be stepping up to serve as EP/Showrunners. Atlas Entertainment's Richard Suckle (Suicide Squad, American Hustle, The International) and Charles Roven (Suicide Squad, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, American Hustle) will continue to executive produce with Atlas' Jake Kurily producing. Roven served as producer on the original film.

Currently in its first season, 12 Monkeys has reached 15 million viewers to date, and is experiencing record L3 lifts for the network (average L3 lift is 104%). The renewal also comes as the series continues to gain momentum, with its most recent episode (Friday, March 6) seeing an increase of 6% over the prior four weeks, with 1.5 million total viewers.

"We are absolutely committed to 12 Monkeys, and have been incredibly impressed by the outstanding critical and audience praise the series has earned," said Dave Howe, Syfy President. "The talent both on and off-screen have delivered a series that has us all on the edge of our seats, providing exactly the smart, exciting storytelling Syfy is known for."

Jeff Wachtel, President and Chief Content Officer, NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment, added, "12 Monkeys is a show that has exceeded expectations at every stage. It's had a great first season creatively, and is building a dedicated audience. We can't wait to see where - and when! - Terry and Travis will take us next."

In this Friday's episode* - the ninth in the 13-part first season - Cole (Aaron Stanford) finds himself in 2017 at the height of the plague. Out of options, Jones (Barbara Sukowa) faces an impossible choice to replace the Core. 12 Monkeys airs Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/PT; the season one finale will air Friday, April 10.

12 Monkeys is produced by Universal Cable Productions in association with Atlas Entertainment, who produced the original Golden Globe winning theatrical film.